Doctor Mabuse
Encyclopedia
Doctor Mabuse is a fictional character
created by Norbert Jacques
in the novel Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler, and made famous by the three movies director Fritz Lang
made about the character; see Dr. Mabuse the Gambler. Although the character was designed deliberately to mimic pulp magazine
-style villains such as Dr. Fu Manchu
and Fantômas
, the latter of which was a direct inspiration, Jacques' goal was both commercial success and to make political comments, in much the same way that the silent movie
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
(1920) had done just a few years previously.
. Mabuse rarely commits his crimes in person, instead operating primarily through a network of agents implementing schemes he has planned for them. Mabuse's agents range from career criminals working for him, to innocents blackmail
ed or hypnotized into cooperation, to dupes manipulated so successfully they do not realize that they are doing exactly what Mabuse planned for them to do.
Mabuse's identity often changes; one "Dr. Mabuse" may be defeated and sent to an asylum, jail, or grave, only for a new "Dr. Mabuse" to later appear, as depicted in The Testament of Dr. Mabuse. The replacement invariably has the same methods, the same powers of hypnosis, and the same criminal genius
. There are even suggestions in some installments of the series that the "real" Mabuse is some sort of spirit that possesses
a series of hosts spiritually.
. The novel
was the beneficiary of unprecedented publicity efforts and became a best-seller very soon. Lang, already an accomplished director, worked with his wife Thea von Harbou
to translate the novel to the screen, where it also became a great success. The film Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler
(1922), with a playing time of more than four hours, was released in two separate sections: Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler, an Image of the Times and Inferno, People of the Times.
After the great success of both the novel and the movie, it was almost a decade before anything more was done with the character. Jacques had been working on a sequel to the novel, named Mabuse's Colony, in which Mabuse has died and a group of his devotees are starting an island colony based on the principles described by Mabuse's manifesto
. However, the novel was unfinished. After conversations with Lang and von Harbou, Jacques agreed to discontinue the novel and the sequel instead became the 1933 movie Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse, in which the Mabuse of 1920 (still played by Rudolf Klein-Rogge
) is an inmate in an insane asylum
, but has for some time been obsessively writing meticulous plans for crime and terrorism
— plans that are being performed by a gang of criminals outside the asylum, who receive their orders from a person who has identified himself to them only as Dr. Mabuse.
released their debut single, "Dr. Mabuse", during 1984 as a tribute to the character; the song was also part of their debut album, A Secret Wish
, during 1985.
The German musical band Blue System
released a song named "Doctor Mabuse", as part of the album X-Ten, during 1994. The song was also released as a single.
Jean-Marc Lofficier
wrote Superman's Metropolis
, a trilogy of graphic novel
s for DC Comics
illustrated by Ted McKeever
, the third of which was entitled Wonder Woman: The Blue Amazon
, with the plot derived partly from Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler. The character of Mabuse was combined with Wonder Woman
villain Doctor Psycho
.
Dr. Mabuse was mentioned as a member of Die Zwielichthelden (The Twilight Heroes) in the graphic novel
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier
, by Alan Moore
and Kevin O'Neill
. Along with Doctor Caligari
and Professor Rotwang
, Mabuse was a villain for the third volume, Century
, published during 2009.
Mabuse also appears with his fellow silent movie characters in Kim Newman
's novel The Bloody Red Baron
, in which he, Caligari, Rotwang, Count Orlok
and others attempt to create the Red Baron.
In Charles Stross
' James Bond
spoof novel The Jennifer Morgue
, the main villain, who has hypnotic eyes, has a yacht named Mabuse. In the afterward, Stross discusses Mabuse as the first supervillain
and the direct predecessor of Ernst Stavro Blofeld
.
The Brazilian musician and designer H.D. Mabuse has used this name as his pseudonym for more than 20 years.
The name "Mabuse" is a pseudonym of a fictionalized version of Fritz Lang
in Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa
.
Dr. Mabuse inspired Wong Jing
's 1989 movie God of Gamblers
.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
created by Norbert Jacques
Norbert Jacques
Norbert Jacques was a Luxembourgian german-language novelist and screenwriter. He was born in Luxembourg-Eich, Luxembourg, and died in Koblenz, Germany. He created the character Doctor Mabuse who was a feature of some of his novels, including "Mabuse's Colony". Jacques is known best for his work...
in the novel Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler, and made famous by the three movies director Fritz Lang
Fritz Lang
Friedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang was an Austrian-American filmmaker, screenwriter, and occasional film producer and actor. One of the best known émigrés from Germany's school of Expressionism, he was dubbed the "Master of Darkness" by the British Film Institute...
made about the character; see Dr. Mabuse the Gambler. Although the character was designed deliberately to mimic pulp magazine
Pulp magazine
Pulp magazines , also collectively known as pulp fiction, refers to inexpensive fiction magazines published from 1896 through the 1950s. The typical pulp magazine was seven inches wide by ten inches high, half an inch thick, and 128 pages long...
-style villains such as Dr. Fu Manchu
Fu Manchu
Dr. Fu Manchu is a fictional character introduced in a series of novels by British author Sax Rohmer during the first half of the 20th century...
and Fantômas
Fantômas
Fantômas is a fictional character created by French writers Marcel Allain and Pierre Souvestre .One of the most popular characters in the history of French crime fiction, Fantômas was created in 1911 and appeared in a total of 32 volumes written by the two collaborators, then a subsequent 11...
, the latter of which was a direct inspiration, Jacques' goal was both commercial success and to make political comments, in much the same way that the silent movie
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is a 1920 silent horror film directed by Robert Wiene from a screenplay by Hans Janowitz and Carl Mayer. It is one of the most influential of German Expressionist films and is often considered one of the greatest horror movies of the silent era. This movie is cited as...
(1920) had done just a few years previously.
Description
Dr. Mabuse is a master of disguise and telepathic hypnosisHypnosis
Hypnosis is "a trance state characterized by extreme suggestibility, relaxation and heightened imagination."It is a mental state or imaginative role-enactment . It is usually induced by a procedure known as a hypnotic induction, which is commonly composed of a long series of preliminary...
. Mabuse rarely commits his crimes in person, instead operating primarily through a network of agents implementing schemes he has planned for them. Mabuse's agents range from career criminals working for him, to innocents blackmail
Blackmail
In common usage, blackmail is a crime involving threats to reveal substantially true or false information about a person to the public, a family member, or associates unless a demand is met. It may be defined as coercion involving threats of physical harm, threat of criminal prosecution, or threats...
ed or hypnotized into cooperation, to dupes manipulated so successfully they do not realize that they are doing exactly what Mabuse planned for them to do.
Mabuse's identity often changes; one "Dr. Mabuse" may be defeated and sent to an asylum, jail, or grave, only for a new "Dr. Mabuse" to later appear, as depicted in The Testament of Dr. Mabuse. The replacement invariably has the same methods, the same powers of hypnosis, and the same criminal genius
Genius
Genius is something or someone embodying exceptional intellectual ability, creativity, or originality, typically to a degree that is associated with the achievement of unprecedented insight....
. There are even suggestions in some installments of the series that the "real" Mabuse is some sort of spirit that possesses
Spiritual possession
Spirit possession is a paranormal or supernatural event in which it is said that spirits, gods, demons, animas, extraterrestrials, or other disincarnate or extraterrestrial entities take control of a human body, resulting in noticeable changes in health and behaviour...
a series of hosts spiritually.
History
Dr. Mabuse first appeared in the 1921 novel Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler (translation: "Dr. Mabuse The Player" or "Dr. Mabuse The Gambler") by Norbert JacquesNorbert Jacques
Norbert Jacques was a Luxembourgian german-language novelist and screenwriter. He was born in Luxembourg-Eich, Luxembourg, and died in Koblenz, Germany. He created the character Doctor Mabuse who was a feature of some of his novels, including "Mabuse's Colony". Jacques is known best for his work...
. The novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
was the beneficiary of unprecedented publicity efforts and became a best-seller very soon. Lang, already an accomplished director, worked with his wife Thea von Harbou
Thea von Harbou
Thea Gabriele von Harbou was a German actress, author and film director of Prussian aristocratic origin. She was born in Tauperlitz in the Kingdom of Bavaria.-Early work:...
to translate the novel to the screen, where it also became a great success. The film Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler
Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler
Dr. Mabuse the Gambler is the first film in the Dr. Mabuse series, about the character Doctor Mabuse who featured in the novels of Norbert Jacques. It was directed by Fritz Lang and released in 1922. The film is silent and filmed mostly 16 frames per second. It would be followed by The Testament...
(1922), with a playing time of more than four hours, was released in two separate sections: Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler, an Image of the Times and Inferno, People of the Times.
After the great success of both the novel and the movie, it was almost a decade before anything more was done with the character. Jacques had been working on a sequel to the novel, named Mabuse's Colony, in which Mabuse has died and a group of his devotees are starting an island colony based on the principles described by Mabuse's manifesto
Manifesto
A manifesto is a public declaration of principles and intentions, often political in nature. Manifestos relating to religious belief are generally referred to as creeds. Manifestos may also be life stance-related.-Etymology:...
. However, the novel was unfinished. After conversations with Lang and von Harbou, Jacques agreed to discontinue the novel and the sequel instead became the 1933 movie Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse, in which the Mabuse of 1920 (still played by Rudolf Klein-Rogge
Rudolf Klein-Rogge
Friedrich Rudolf Klein-Rogge was a German film actor. Klein-Rogge is known for playing sinister figures in films in the 1920s and 1930s as well as being a main-stay in director Fritz Lang's Weimar-era films.- Biography :...
) is an inmate in an insane asylum
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
, but has for some time been obsessively writing meticulous plans for crime and terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
— plans that are being performed by a gang of criminals outside the asylum, who receive their orders from a person who has identified himself to them only as Dr. Mabuse.
Cultural influences and homages
The German musical group PropagandaPropaganda (band)
Propaganda is a German synthpop group, formed in 1982. They were one of the initial roster of acts signed to Trevor Horn's ZTT label, between 1984 and 1986, during which they released the critically acclaimed album A Secret Wish....
released their debut single, "Dr. Mabuse", during 1984 as a tribute to the character; the song was also part of their debut album, A Secret Wish
A Secret Wish
- Original 1985 vinyl album release :A – WITHIN# "Dream Within A Dream" – 8:04# "The Murder Of Love" – 5:12# "Jewel" – 3:10# "Duel" – 4:43B – WITHOUT# "p:Machinery" [album mix]" – 3:50# "Sorry For Laughing" – 3:25# "Dr...
, during 1985.
The German musical band Blue System
Blue System
Blue System was a German pop group that was founded by Dieter Bohlen in 1987 after the break-up of Modern Talking.The group consisted of Dieter Bohlen , and hired backstage musicians Rolf Köhler , Michael Scholz , Detlef Wiedeke and other background and/or front female voices unknown to the...
released a song named "Doctor Mabuse", as part of the album X-Ten, during 1994. The song was also released as a single.
Jean-Marc Lofficier
Jean-Marc Lofficier
Jean-Marc Lofficier is a French author of books about films and television programs, as well as numerous comic books and translations of a number of animation screenplays. He usually collaborates with his wife, Randy Lofficier .-Biography:Jean-Marc Lofficier was born in Toulon, France in 1954...
wrote Superman's Metropolis
Superman's Metropolis
Superman's Metropolis is a DC Comics comic book Elseworlds publication and the first part in a trilogy based on German Expressionist cinema...
, a trilogy of graphic novel
Graphic novel
A graphic novel is a narrative work in which the story is conveyed to the reader using sequential art in either an experimental design or in a traditional comics format...
s for DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
illustrated by Ted McKeever
Ted McKeever
-Career:McKeever first professional work appeared in 1987, when he published the first five parts of his unfinished series Transit , establishing his trademark style. This was followed in 1987-1988 by his 12-part series Eddy Current. This "12-hour book" centers on an escapee from an asylum...
, the third of which was entitled Wonder Woman: The Blue Amazon
Wonder Woman: The Blue Amazon
Wonder Woman: The Blue Amazon is a DC Comics comic book Elseworlds publication and the final part of a trilogy, based on German Expressionist cinema. It was written by Jean-Marc Lofficier and Randy Lofficier and illustrated by Ted McKeever....
, with the plot derived partly from Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler. The character of Mabuse was combined with Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
villain Doctor Psycho
Doctor Psycho
Doctor Psycho is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. A villainous telepathic dwarf, Doctor Psycho has traditionally been presented as an adversary for Wonder Woman...
.
Dr. Mabuse was mentioned as a member of Die Zwielichthelden (The Twilight Heroes) in the graphic novel
Graphic novel
A graphic novel is a narrative work in which the story is conveyed to the reader using sequential art in either an experimental design or in a traditional comics format...
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier is an original graphic novel in the comic book series The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Kevin O'Neill. It was the last volume of the series to be published by DC Comics. Although the third book to be...
, by Alan Moore
Alan Moore
Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
and Kevin O'Neill
Kevin O'Neill (comics)
Kevin O'Neill is an English comic book illustrator best known as the co-creator of Nemesis the Warlock, Marshal Law , and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen .-Early career:...
. Along with Doctor Caligari
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is a 1920 silent horror film directed by Robert Wiene from a screenplay by Hans Janowitz and Carl Mayer. It is one of the most influential of German Expressionist films and is often considered one of the greatest horror movies of the silent era. This movie is cited as...
and Professor Rotwang
Rotwang
C. A. Rotwang is a fictional character in Fritz Lang's 1927 science fiction film Metropolis. Rotwang was played by Rudolf Klein-Rogge.- Character overview :...
, Mabuse was a villain for the third volume, Century
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Volume III: Century
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Volume III: Century is the third volume of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Kevin O'Neill. Co-published by Top Shelf Productions and Knockabout Comics in the US and UK respectively, Century will be published in...
, published during 2009.
Mabuse also appears with his fellow silent movie characters in Kim Newman
Kim Newman
Kim Newman is an English journalist, film critic, and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's Dracula at the age of eleven—and alternate fictional versions of history...
's novel The Bloody Red Baron
The Bloody Red Baron
The Bloody Red Baron is a 1995 novel by British author Kim Newman. It is the second book in the Anno Dracula series and takes place thirty years after the former.-Plot:...
, in which he, Caligari, Rotwang, Count Orlok
Count Orlok
Count Orlok is a fictional character portrayed by Max Schreck in the silent movie Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens...
and others attempt to create the Red Baron.
In Charles Stross
Charles Stross
Charles David George "Charlie" Stross is a British writer of science fiction, Lovecraftian horror and fantasy. He was born in Leeds.Stross specialises in hard science fiction and space opera...
' James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
spoof novel The Jennifer Morgue
The Jennifer Morgue
The Jennifer Morgue is the second collection of stories by Charles Stross featuring Bob Howard, containing the title novel The Jennifer Morgue, the short story "Pimpf", and an essay titled "The Golden Age of Spying"...
, the main villain, who has hypnotic eyes, has a yacht named Mabuse. In the afterward, Stross discusses Mabuse as the first supervillain
Supervillain
A supervillain or supervillainess is a variant of the villain character type, commonly found in comic books, action movies and science fiction in various media.They are sometimes used as foils to superheroes and other fictional heroes...
and the direct predecessor of Ernst Stavro Blofeld
Ernst Stavro Blofeld
Ernst Stavro Blofeld is a fictional character and a supervillain from the James Bond series of novels and films, who was created by Ian Fleming and Kevin McClory. An evil genius with aspirations of world domination, he is the archenemy of the British Secret Service agent James Bond and is arguably...
.
The Brazilian musician and designer H.D. Mabuse has used this name as his pseudonym for more than 20 years.
The name "Mabuse" is a pseudonym of a fictionalized version of Fritz Lang
Fritz Lang
Friedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang was an Austrian-American filmmaker, screenwriter, and occasional film producer and actor. One of the best known émigrés from Germany's school of Expressionism, he was dubbed the "Master of Darkness" by the British Film Institute...
in Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa
Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa
is a 2005 Japanese animated film directed by Seiji Mizushima and written by Sho Aikawa, and acts as a continuation of the first Fullmetal Alchemist television series...
.
Dr. Mabuse inspired Wong Jing
Wong Jing
Wong Jing is a Hong Kong film director, producer, actor, presenter, and screenwriter. A prolific filmmaker possessed of strong instincts for crowd-pleasing and publicity, he is often cited as the most consistently successful filmmaker , in commercial terms, in the Hong Kong cinema of the last...
's 1989 movie God of Gamblers
God of Gamblers
God of Gamblers is a 1989 Hong Kong action comedy-drama film written and directed by Wong Jing, and featuring an ensemble cast.- Synopsis :Chow Yun-fat plays Ko Chun, an extremely talented and well known gambler...
.
Filmography
- Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler (1922), directed by Fritz LangFritz LangFriedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang was an Austrian-American filmmaker, screenwriter, and occasional film producer and actor. One of the best known émigrés from Germany's school of Expressionism, he was dubbed the "Master of Darkness" by the British Film Institute...
.- EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
title: Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler.
- English
- Das Testament des Dr. MabuseThe Testament of Dr. MabuseThe Testament of Dr. Mabuse is a 1933 German crime film directed by Fritz Lang. The movie is a sequel to Lang's silent film Dr. Mabuse the Gambler and features many cast and crew members from Lang's previous films. The film features Rudolf Klein-Rogge as Dr. Mabuse who is in an insane asylum...
(1933), directed by Fritz Lang.- English title: The Testament of Dr. Mabuse
- A French-language version was filmed at the same time, on the same sets, but with a mainly different cast.
- The Crimes of Dr. Mabuse is a truncated, reorganized and redubbed adaptation of The Testament of Dr. Mabuse made primarily for U. S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
audiences.
- Die Tausend Augen des Dr. MabuseThe Thousand Eyes of Dr. MabuseThe Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse is a 1960 film made in West Germany. It was the last film directed by Fritz Lang and concerned the further exploits of Dr. Mabuse, a character Lang had used in two previous films in 1922 and 1933.The movie, based on the Esperanto novel Mr...
(1960), directed by Fritz Lang, produced by Artur BraunerArtur BraunerArtur "Atze" Brauner is a polish film producer and entrepreneur. He was born to a Jewish family in Łódź, Poland. Artur and his brother Wolf survived the Holocaust by fleeing to the Soviet Union, then emigrated to Berlin after the war. As a young man he saw Fritz Lang's film The Testament of Dr...
.- English title: The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse.
- Im Stahlnetz' des Dr. Mabuse (1961), directed by Harald Reinl, produced by Artur Brauner.
- English title: The Return of Dr. Mabuse (literally; In the Steel-Web of Dr. Mabuse).
- Die unsichtbaren Krallen des Dr. Mabuse (1962), directed by Harald Reinl, produced by Artur Brauner.
- English title: The Invisible Dr. Mabuse (literally: The Invisible Claws of Dr. Mabuse).
- Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse (1962), directed by Werner KlinglerWerner KlinglerWerner Klingler was a German film director and actor. He directed 29 films between 1936 and 1968.He was born in Stuttgart, Germany and died in Berlin, Germany.-Selected filmography:* Titanic...
, produced by Artur Brauner, a remake of the 1933 movie.- English title: The Testament of Dr. Mabuse).
- Scotland Yard jagt Dr. Mabuse (1963), directed by Paul MayPaul MayPaul May was a German film director. He directed 40 films between 1935 and 1972.He was born in Munich, Germany and died in Taufkirchen, Germany.-External links:...
, produced by Artur Brauner.- English title: Dr. Mabuse vs. Scotland Yard (literally: Scotland Yard hunts Dr. Mabuse).
- Die Todesstrahlen des Dr. Mabuse (1963), directed by Hugo FregoneseHugo FregoneseHugo Fregonese was an Argentine film director who worked both in Hollywood and in Argentina....
, produced by Artur Brauner.- English title: The Death Ray of Dr. Mabuse (literally: The Death-Rays of Dr. Mabuse).
- La Venganza del Dr. Mabuse (1970), directed by Jess FrancoJesús FrancoJesús "Jess" Franco is a Spanish film director, writer, cinematographer and actor. His career took off in 1961 with his cult classic The Awful Dr. Orloff, which received wide distribution in the United States and England...
.- English title: The Vengeance of Dr. Mabuse.
- Docteur MDr. M (film)Dr. M. is a 1990 film co-written and directed by Claude Chabrol. The film is a remake of 1922's Fritz Lang's Dr. Mabuse the Gambler, which was in turn based on Mabuse der Spieler by Norbert Jacques.-Plot:...
(1989), directed by Claude ChabrolClaude ChabrolClaude Chabrol was a French film director, a member of the French New Wave group of filmmakers who first came to prominence at the end of the 1950s...
.- English title: Club Extinction.
Literature
- Kalat, David, The strange case of Dr. Mabuse: a study of the twelve movies and five novels, Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2001.